Roadmap for Physics of Information and Physics of Computation

Click on Headings below—Lectures, Readings, Homeworks, Labs—for details.

Lecture material provided in several formats:

Note: If (20XX) appears below, then linked material updated in year 20XX.

Physics of Computation, Physics 256B, Spring (Chronological):

Classes Lectures Readings Homeworks Labs Comments
Week Date  #(#)  Topic Outline Slides Video
10 1 Apr  1(21)  Overview—What's Wrong with Information Theory? HTML PDF
HTML 		POCI Channel CMR articles RURO (Introduction), CAO, & ROIC. HW 10 assigned Properties of Joint Distributions
3 Apr  2(22)  The Learning Channel HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel CMR articles BOAC & CMPPSS (first sections).
11 8 Apr  3(23)  ε-Machine Reconstruction HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel Lecture Slides. HW 11 assigned, HW 10 due Parse Trees and Future Morphs
10 Apr  4(24)  ε-Machine Optimalities HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel CMR article CMPPSS.
12 15 Apr  5(25)  Measures of Structural Complexity HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel CMR articles CMPPSS and RURO. HW 12 assigned, HW 11 due Parse Trees and Future Morphs
17 Apr  6(26)  Information Diagrams for Processes HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel CMR articles TBA, PRATISP, IACP.
13 22 Apr  7(27)  States of States of Knowledge I HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel CMR articles TBA and Yeung. HW 13 Assigned Mixed State Presentations
24 Apr  8(28)  States of States of Knowledge II HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel CMR articles TBA, PRATISP, IACP.
TO COMMENT OUT ALL REMAINNG WEEKS OF 256B MOVE THESE FOUR LINES DOWN AFTER THE LAST WEEK TO SHOW 14 2 May  9(29)  Directional Computational Mechanics I HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel CMR articles TBA and Yeung. HW 14 Assigned Bidirectional Processes & Machines 4 May  10(30)  Directional Computational Mechanics II HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel CMR articles TBA, PRATISP, IACP. 15 9 May  11(31)  Length Scales in Complex Time Series: Markov & Cryptic Orders HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel CMR articles MRS and SAC. HW 15 Assigned
Last one! Markov Cryptic Information Ryan James 11 May  12(32)  Role of the Future in Analyzing Chaotic Dynamical Systems HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel CMR articles Anatomy and CFR. Ryan James 16 16 May  13(33)  Bayesian Inference for Known Model Structures HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel CMR articles IMC and OIMNC. Project! Lab 1: Bayesian Inference for Epsilon-machines Chris Strelioff 18 May  14(34)  Bayesian Structural Inference HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel CMR article BSI. Project! Lab 2: Bayesian Inference for Epsilon-machines Chris Strelioff 17 23 May  1A(41)  Spectral Decomposition of Intrinsic Computation I HTML PDF (2015) POCI Channel CMR article EC. Project! Lab 1: Canonical Matrix Forms and Process Architecture, Lab 2: Spectral Decompositions of Complexity Paul Riechers 25 May  1B(42)  Spectral Decomposition of Intrinsic Computation II HTML PDF POCI Channel CMR article EC. Project! Lab 3: Spectral Decomposition of Intrinsic Computation Paul Riechers 18 30 May  37a  Information Thermodynamics, Part I HTML PDF (2020) POCI Channel CMR article IRatchet. Project! Alec Boyd 1 June  37b  Information Thermodynamics, Part II HTML PDF (2018) POCI Channel CMR article IRatchet. Project! Alec Boyd 19 6 June Project Presentations I Schedule Students 8 June Project Presentations II Schedule Students 20 15 June Project Reports Due: End of Day Email to chaos@ucdavis.edu At Your Leisure Afterword What We Didn't Cover: The Present and Future HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel At Your Leisure  2A(50)  Quantum Complexity I HTML PDF HTML 2016 Stream Download CMR articles OQS and EQC. John Mahoney At Your Leisure  2B(51)  Quantum Complexity II HTML PDF HTML 2016 Stream Download CMR articles OQS and EQC. John Mahoney At Your Leisure  35  Power Spectra and ε-Machine Spectral Reconstruction HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel CMR articles BTFM1 and BTFM2. Dowman Varn At Your Leisure  36  Intrinsic Computation in Complex Materials HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel CMR articles BTFM1 and BTFM2. Dowman Varn END COMMENT OUT ALL 256B

Physics of Information, Physics 256A, Winter (Chronological):

Classes Lectures Readings Homeworks Labs Comments
Week Date  #  Topic Outline Slides Video
0 7 Jan  1  Overview HTML PDF HTML (2025) POCI Channel Chaos, Scientific American, and Odds, Stanislaw Lem. HW 0 Assigned HW Guidelines, Typesetting Math
9 Jan  2  The Big Picture HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel NDAC Chaps. 1 & 2; reference materials here and Python tutorials. Alex Jurgens, Lecture PDF
1 14 Jan  3  Example Dynamical Systems HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel NDAC Secs. 5.0-5.2, 6.0-6.4, 7.0-7.3, and 9.0-9.4. HW 0 due,
HW 1 Assigned 		Prep Lab 1, Linear Algebra and ODEs, Favorite Flows
16 Jan  4  The Big, Big Picture I HTML PDF HTML
POCI Channel NDAC Chapter 3.
2 21 Jan  5  The Big, Big Picture II HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel NDAC Chapter 8 and Sec. 10.0-10.4. HW 1 due,
HW 2 Assigned 		Prep Lab 2, Cellular Automata
23 Jan  6  Mechanisms of Chaos—Stable Instability HTML PDF HTML (2025)
POCI Channel NDAC Secs. 12.0-12.3, 9.3, and 10.5.
3 28 Jan  7  Example Chaotic Maps (that you can analyze) HTML PDF HTML (2025) POCI Channel NDAC Sections 10.5-10.7. HW 2 due,
HW 3 Assigned 		Prep Lab 3
30 Jan  8  Pattern Formation I: Deterministic
(Part I, Cellular Automata)		 HTML PDF HTML (2025)
POCI Channel Lecture Slides.
4 4 Feb 9 Pattern Formation I: Deterministic
(Part II, Map Lattices)		 See above. See above. POCI Channel Lecture Slides. HW 3 due,
HW 4 Assigned 		Prep Lab 4, 1D Map Evolution of Distributions, One- and Two-Dimensional Maps
6 Feb  10  Probability Theory of Dynamical Systems HTML PDF HTML
POCI Channel Lecture Slides.
5 11 Feb 11 Stochastic Processes HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel Lecture Slides. HW 4 due,
Take-home Midterm Exam on CMPy Cloud 		Symbolic Dynamics and Partitions Lab
13 Feb 12 Measurement Theory I HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel Lecture Slides and CMR Alice (Gilmore/Lefranc Chap. 2).
6 18 Feb 13 Measurement Theory II HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel Lecture Slides and CMR Alice (Gilmore/Lefranc Chap. 2). Midterm due,
HW 6 Assigned 		Processes, Word Distributions, and Models; Information Theory and Communication Channels
25 Feb 14 Entropies HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel EIT Chapters 1 and 2.
7,8 27 Feb 15 Information in Processes I HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel EIT Sections 5.1-5.4 and 7.1-7.7. HW 6 due,
HW 7 Assigned 		Multivariate Information Lab and Information in Processes Lab I
8 4 Mar 16 Information in Processes II HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel EIT Chapter 4 and CMR MET.
8 6 Mar 17 Memory in Processes I HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel CMR article RURO. HW 7 due,
HW 8 Assigned 		Information in Processes Lab 2
9 11 Mar 18 Memory in Processes II HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel CMR article RURO.
9 13 Mar 19 Information Measures and Information Diagrams HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel CMR article Yeung. HW 8 due,
Final Exam (HW 9) Assigned 		Information Diagrams Lab
9 13 Mar 20 Anatomy of a Bit HTML PDF HTML POCI Channel CMR article Anatomy.
TO COMMENT OUT ALL REMAINNG WEEKS OF 256A MOVE THESE FOUR LINES AFTER THE LAST WEEK TO SHOW END COMMENT OUT ALL 256A

All materials © James P. Crutchfield 2006-2025